1. Field of the Disclosure
The disclosure relates in general to the formation of articles and the articles formed thereby, and more particularly, to an article forming method and system comprising the injection and heating of a plurality of fiber bundles to form an integrated article (which in certain embodiments may include an integrated cover and/or an integrated frame member). Among other articles, as seat cushion article is disclosed as well as a method and system of formation thereof. It will be understood that the seat cushion provides an exemplary embodiment, and is not intended to be limiting in any manner.
2. Background Art
Articles, such as cushions and other resilient, yet elastically deformable components, are formed from many different materials in a number of different manners. For example, horse hair cushions were for a long time made from a plurality of natural fibers which were bonded together with a bonding agent, such as a latex material. The combination is then covered with a fabric or other textile. Over time, the fibers degrade as does the bonding agent. Moreover, such a cushion is susceptible to compression set over time and repeated use.
Other cushions are formed from a foam material. In certain embodiments, a urethane closed cell foam is utilized. It is cut so a desired shape and often covered with a fabric or other textile. In other embodiments, the urethane foam can be molded into a desired shape. Again, a fabric or other textile covers the molded foam. While these foams have advantages over the horse hair cushion described above, there are problems associated with the urethane foam.
For example, the urethane foam is typically substantially uniform throughout. Thus, the resulting cushion is substantially uniform. If it is desired to have different regions having different performance, pieces of foam are typically cut into multiple smaller parts and glued together to form different regions. This is a labor intensive operation and is typically not feasible from a cost standpoint. Additionally, the adhesives and joints between the different foam pieces can suffer performance degradation.
Furthermore, the urethane foam captures and retains fluids. Often, the retention of fluids results in odor problems and moisture problems. It is often difficult to fully dry urethane foam. Thus, mold and mildew can quickly set into the urethane foam.
Finally, as urethane foams are formed from a chemical reaction of two reagents, the recyclability of such urethane foams is quite limited. Typically, urethane foams can be shredded to form carpet padding and the like. However, it is not possible to remold or reform urethane foam into a new cushion structure. Thus, reuse and recyclability of urethane foam cushions is quite limited.